Discover the fascinating world of London's wildlife! 🌿 From red deer casting their antlers to squirrels giving birth, this article dives into the unique behaviors and seasonal changes of these incredible creatures. Learn how red deer in London's parks grow larger antlers than their wild counterparts and why they crush their cast antlers with powerful jaws. Explore the playful interactions of fallow deer with last year's fawns and the shy roe deer feeding at dusk.
Marvel at the incredible mothering skills of squirrels as they raise their first litter of the year, and discover how young squirrels can fall from great heights without injury. Uncover the unique breeding patterns of these agile creatures and the signs that indicate young squirrels are nearby.
Return on 12 March for the next installment, where we'll explore more wonders of nature in London's parks and forests. Stay tuned for more captivating insights and stunning observations!
Article
Deer
Red deer are often the first to caste their antlers, with those reared in London’s parks usually having much larger horns than their wild counterparts. After casting them, they are often then seen crushing the antlers with their strong jaws. The new antlers soon start to grow, with insects being attracted to the new velvet that covers them. This nuisance may account for seeing deer sat in the open more, where there are fewer insects to torment them. They also tend to feed in the early morning and late evening, sitting most of the day chewing the cud, enjoying a commanding view.
Whereas red deer remained in single sex herds during the winter, those of fallow deer were mixed, but the latter are now starting to break up. Fallow deer may now be seen playing with last year’s fawns. They are also more likely to be moving to a new area than red deer. Whilst deer are moulting, birds such as magpies or starlings are sometimes seen on their backs collecting any loose hair to line their nests. The coats of fallow deer are now starting to change from the dull, uniform brown of winter to the handsome spotted coat of summer. Epping Forest is known for its black fallow deer. However, this is just a darker race which are actually dark brown and not black.
Compared with red and fallow, roe deer are well advanced in the growth of their new horns. They will be complete by the middle of next month. These shy animals are still in small, family parties. They can sometimes now be seen feeding at dusk in large fields usually some distance from the nearest road.
Squirrels
Squirrels give birth this month. The doe’s first litter usually consists of three blind, pink, deaf kittens. She is a model mother, raising her young entirely by herself, suckling them for the whole month, licking and cleaning them and picking them up gently with her formidable incisors if they stray too far. After two or three weeks they will have hair and lower incisors, but will still be blind and deaf. Because of her good mothering skills, squirrel mortality tends to be low compared with other mammals. Amazingly, young squirrels can fall nine metres without injuring themselves.
Unusually, individual squirrels can breed at different times of year. Breeding can be delayed or even stopped and it is for this reason we don’t see lots of young squirrels at any one time. However, a slightly larger drey, well-upholstered with dead leaves, often indicates there are young squirrels within.
